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  Development of Head-Controlled Electric Powered Wheelchair

Biomechanical Evaluation of Tasks to Transfer the Patients

     Development of Devices to Prevent to Leave Wheelchair Brakes Unapplication

     Development of Brakes Using Pneumatic Mechanisms

I studied for one year from September, 1996 at Centre for Studies in Aging, Sunnybrook Health Science Centre, University of Toronto.

Please go and see HomePage of Center for Studies in Aging to refer to their research.

Personal

Member, The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers

Member, The Society of Biomechanisms Japan

Member, Rehabilitation Engineering Society of Japan

Member, Japan Ergonomics Society

Member, RESNA

Member, IEEE

• Kazunori Hase, Takenobu Inoue, Kizuka, Seiki Kaneko, Hideyuki Hirose, Yasuo Sudoh:A simulation of body movement to predict physical loads involved in caregiving,Biomechanism vol.22 No.3 115-120. (in Japanese)
• Takenobu Inoue, Hideyuki Hirose, Hirosi Imaizumi,Devices to prevent to leave wheelchair brakes unapplication during transfer activities for elderly disabled people,Ergonomics Vol.32,183-188. (in Japanese)
• Takenobu Inoue, Hideyuki Hirose, Yasuo Sudoh,Development of a Head-controlled electric powered wheelchair for a person with cerebral palsy,Biomechanism 12,303-314. (in Japanese)
• Takenobu Inoue, Hideyuki Hirose, Yasuo Sudoh, Kazuyuki Itoh, Ikuko Seki?Augmentation of the capable head movement of a severely disabled child with cerebral palsy,Biomechanism 13,141-151. (in Japanese)

• Takenobu Inoue, G.Fernie,P.L.Santaguida: Measurement of trajectory and calculation of maneuvering force for wheeled lift, Proceedings of the 14th RESJA Conference,307-310. 1999 (in Japanese)
• Takenobu Inoue,G.Fernie,P.L.Santaguida: Low Back Loads During Maneuvering Tasks with Lifting Devices,14th Biomechanism Symposium,79-90. 1999 (in Japanese)
• Yukiko Horikoshi, Ichirou Obara, Nobuhisa Yamazaki, Takenobu Inoue: Biomechanical Estimation of Lumber Load on Transferring Assistance, The Japanese Journal of Ergonomics, 81.1999 (in Japanese)
• Takenobu Inoue, Yasuo Sudoh, Hideyuki Hirose: A Head-Controlled Powered Wheelchair and Independent Mobility,The 11th Bioengineering Conference,348-349.1999 (in Japanese)
• Takenobu Inoue, Yasuo Sudoh, Hideyuki Hirose, Kazunori Hase: Development of a simulator of powered wheelchair, Proceedings of the Biomechanisms 19th Annual Conference,1998, 202-212 (in Japanese)
• T.Inoue,Geoff Fernie,P.L.Santaguida,Dynamic property of castors on wheeled lifts, Proceedings of the RESJA 13th Annual Conference, 1998, P365-368 (in Japanese)
• T.Inoue,G.Fernie,P.L.Santaguida: MEASUREMENT OF LOW BACK LOADS DURING MANEUVERING TASKS WITH A WHEELDE LIFTING DEVICE, Third World Congress of Biomechanics Abstracts (WCB '98) 1998,P512
• T.Inoue,H.Hirose,Y.Sudoh,K.Hase: DEVELOPMENT OF A SIMULATOR OF POWERED WHEELCHAIR, Proceedings of the RESNA ’98Annual Conference ,1998,P182-184
• T.Inoue,Geoff Fernie,P.L.Santaguida: Measurement of low back loads during maneuvering tasks with a wheeled lifting device, Proceedings of the Biomechanisms 18th Annual Conference, 1998 P287-290. (in Japanese)

An electric powered wheelchair is very important for people with severe physical disability as their way of moving. In general, an electric powered wheelchair that a person operates the joystick by his upper limb is popular. However, some people cannot use it due to their severe impairment. Especially for the people having severe cerebral palsy, to set up the operating system is very difficult because of their physical limitation of their limbs.

However, if we consider the limitation of their mobility and develop the easier operating system, they can get a chance to move by themselves. A head-controlled powered wheelchair detects the head position and the posture by magnetic sensor and people can operate a powered wheelchair with the support of this data.

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Development of a Simulator of Powered Wheelchair

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The transfer from a bed to a wheelchair has very important role for the severly disabled people as the first step for mobility. However, the tranfer tasks of the patient impose a burden on care givers and it causes a low back pain. It is said that using transferring devices is effective to reduce the load of care givers. But in real care giving situation, the transferring devices are not used. So, we evaluate the load of tasks to transfer the patients with each meathod by using the moment charged on the low back as a characteristic.

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It is not a few that the number of elderly disabled who use the wheelchair as their way of moving. However, elderly disabled have very high risk of accidents because of their physical disfunction and lack of concentration.  The falling accident during the transfer is popular for the elderly disabled in hospitals. One of the main causes of falling is the failure of wheelchair brakes operation.  If elderly disabled people suffer a bone fracture, it will make their daily life very difficult.

To prevent the accidents, we developed 3 devices to prevent leaving wheelchair brakes unapplication as follows.

1.Warning system of leaving wheelchair brakes unapplication
   Giving a warning by voice.

2.Coercive brake system using a lever (Picture)
  A brake is positioned in the front of a user like a crossing gate, so the user cannot stand
  up without braking.

3.Automatic braking system using a seat
     When a user stand up, the seat is lifted by a spring putted under the seat. With this lifting
     motion, the brakes are automatically applied.

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Special thanks to Nanae ISHIHARA